Oliver hughes



(No Model.)

O. HUGHES.

' GAR COUPLING. No. 376,386. v Patented Jan. 10, 1888.

UNITE STATES CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 376,386, dated January10, 1888.

I Application filed October 11, 1886. Serial No. 215,963. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, QLIVER HUGHES, a citizen of the United States,residing at Oallao, in the county of Macon and State of Missouri, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Oar-Couplers, of whichthe following is a specification.

My invention relates to that class of earcouplers in which thecoupling-link is provided centrally with a projecting handle and thedraw-heads are extended below the link socket $1 opening to formforwardly-projecting bufers.

The object of my invention is to produce a coupling of the characterstated in which the bumping strain will be transmitted longitudinally ofthe draw-head, the upper part of the draw-head, above the link-socket,terminating short of the outer ends of the buffers, and the upper faceof each buffer being provided with a tipering recess, forming a guidewayfor the A'further object of my invention is a bar coupling-link providedat its ends with vertical openings for the passage of the couplingpinsand centrally with an immovable handle.

The invention consists in particulars of construction and combinations,to be hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinalsection showing-drawheads and coupling-link in operative position.

2 is a perspective view of the coupling- The draw-heads A are enlargedat front and provided with an open socket, 0, for the reception of thelink 0, anda vertical aperture for the reception of the coupling-pin D,as is usual.

also that thelower part of the shank A of the draw-head is nearly on aline with the bottom of the buffer B, whereby the bumping shock iscommunicated longitudinally through the draw-head, and a tendency tofracture is avoided.

The sides of the link-socket are formed by webs c, which are extendedforward to the front outer corners of the buffer B, thus forming atapering recess. or guideway for the link 0.

The link 0 is constructed, preferably, of a bar of malleable iron,provided at each end with a vertical aperture for the passage of thecoupling-pin D. These apertures may be formed by a punch or otherwise.The link is provided centrally with a permanently and rigidly securedupwardly-projecting handle,

E, of a form to be conveniently grasped by the hand when inserting theend of the link or removing it, and is of such length that the hand-held6 will be above the abutting faces of the buffers or the webs 0, thusinsuring safety to the hand in coupling or uncoupling.

I am aware that a draw-bar having a buffer formed by a base-extensionfrom the open end draw-bar, leaving a clear way above said buffer forthe direct handling of the link, is not new and I am also aware that itis not new to provide a couplinglink with a removablekey or hand hold,nor to provide a horizontal bar or rod cast withindependent links, norto combine with a hand-plate having an aperture the ordinarycoupling-link having its side bars brought together at about the centerand held thereat in said aperture, and these features I do not claim.

What I do claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a car-coupler, a draw-head provided below-the link-socket with adownwardly-extending buffer, the bottom of which is nearly in a planewith the bottom of the shank of the draw -head and having its upper facein a plane with the bottom of the link-socket, the side walls of saidlink-socket being extended forward divergingly to form a taperingguideway for the link, substantially as described.

2. In combination with a draw-head conthat the hand-hole 6 will be abovethe upper structed substantially as described, a coupedges of the webs cof the buffers, for the purling-link consisting of a flat metal barpropose set forth.

vided at each end with an elongated aperture OLIVER HUGHES. 5 for thepassage of a coupling-pin and. cen- \Vitnesses:

trally with a permanently and rigidly secured J NO. M. LONDON,

upwardly-projecting handle, E, of such length W. M. WILLIS.

